


all i ever wanted was to be your equal

by alittleunstable



Category: Merlin (TV), Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Lena deserves better, Lena gets the brother she deserves, M/M, alex danvers being a boss ass bitch, also there's magic, arthur always loved his sister even in the end you can't convince me otherwise, in which Lena has to come to terms with a past life, it's sappy af, kara being in awe of Lena like 24/7, lots of feelings, supercorp is a main theme but the first few chapters wl be Lena coming to terms with this shiz
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2017-06-14
Packaged: 2018-11-14 01:58:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11198070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alittleunstable/pseuds/alittleunstable
Summary: Lena always felt like she was different, but she couldn't figure out why. That is, until she met Mr. Emerys, a familiar stranger who brings the truth to light.Aka; Lena's past life catches up with her and Kara reminds her that your past doesn't matter, it's what you learn from it that does.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm a slut for Lena in emotional turmoil, so sue me. Also I can't be the only one who thinks she deserves a family that actually loves her? Is that just me or? Idk, either way as much as I love the idea of her sharing Kara's family, I always wanted her to have one of her own and I feel like Arthur could be that for her.
> 
> Also this will be supercorp trash so there's that. 
> 
> Oh and Lena will be staying as Lena. I love Morgana, but if you ask me after living to be 24 and becoming the person you are, a memory is just a memory, she's aware that it was her, but her characterisation will still be the way Lena always has been. That said, I really hope you guys enjoy this!!

Lena wouldn't be lying if she said she'd always felt like something was just a little bit...off. Like her whole world wasn't quite calibrated correctly, as though every morning when she looked at herself in the mirror her reflection was slightly off centre, or maybe she was missing something that was in plain sight yet somehow has always managed to elude her. It was frustrating, to say the least.

However, it was also easily written off as a symptom of being a Luthor. The nasty after effects of being a part of a family but also not being a part of that family, and knowing that. It was just that, as silly as it probably was, Lena couldn't help but think it was more than that. That there was something more behind all of that, something so big that she couldn't be missing it, but she was. The feeling was stronger some days than it was others, and on this particular day, it was at its strongest. 

Lena took a deep breath, eyebrows knitted together as she tried to ignore the dull ache beating between her temples, and kept her eyes focused on the papers in front of her. It was several minutes before she grumbled a curse under her breath and moved the papers aside, deciding that staring at her off white desk was probably more productive than reading the same sentence over and over again. 

It niggled at her brain, like a familiar scent that would suddenly take you back to eight years old at your grandmothers house, or twenty one drinking yourself unconscious, but the memory that must have gone with this feeling was just out of reach. 

"Miss Luthor?" Jess's voice is tentative, she never liked interrupting her boss when she seemed to be having a hard day, and Lena appreciated that. 

"What is it, Jess?" She asks, tapping her fingers mindlessly on her desk, eyes drifting up to meet her assistant's. She frowns at the stress displayed on Jess's face. 

"There's a man here to see you," Jess explains, but something in the way she's holding herself, tense, fidgety, worries Lena. 

"Does he have an appointment?" She stands, coming to stand in front of her desk, too hesitant to come to stand directly in front of Jess, she's not good at judging relationships, in fact, she would have said she didn't have any friends at all, had it not been for Kara (her mind involuntarily flickers into overdrive whenever she thinks of the mild mannered reporter and god is that the last thing she needs to entertain the thought of). 

"Yeah, that's the thing, he does," Jess winces, "But I swear, when I told you earlier that you had no appointments, I was telling the truth. I never put this one in, it's just...there." She looks a little freaked out, honestly, and Lena sighs. So, probably another assassination attempt then. She turns on her heel and moves back behind her desk, taking a seat and double checking that her panic button is still in working order.

"It's okay, Jess. I'm sure that's true. In any case let's not keep him waiting any longer." Lena gestures to indicate Jess can show him in, and lets her fingers dance along the button ever so gently, forcing a smile from her face at the thought that perhaps Kara will show up, in magnificent red and blue to save the day. 

"Miss Luthor. I've been looking everywhere for you," 

She looks up and instantly falters, fingers stuttering in place over the button, and she stares at him. From his obnoxiously large ears, to his hipster get up. If someone was going to send an assassin, why send someone who looks like they're probably also a part time folk singer? Her eyes focus on his face and there's a confusing familiarity about him, like she's seen him a million times before, like she knows him but doesn't know him, and she clenches her teeth, annoyed at herself for feeling this strange way. 

"Well, you've found me. So what is it that brings you here, Mr...?" She lets the question hang in the ear, even though she feels like his name is on the tip of her tongue, as though she shouldn't even need to ask. 

"Emerys," The man says, and then realises there's a seat in front of her and moves to occupy it, all while looking at her in the oddest searching way. 

"Merlin." Her lips move against her own volition and as soon as the word escapes her mouth she's left baffled as to why she'd said it at all. "Sorry. I don't know what I'm saying. What was it that you needed Mr. Emerys?" 

Mr. Emerys sits heavily and runs a hand over his face, short cropped black hair sitting disheveled on his head, and then, slowly, and much to Lena's dismay, a boyish grin spreads across his lips. "This is going to be easier than Arthur was," he marvels, and then he laughs. "He can be such a pratt sometimes." 

Lena squints at him, and it tugs at her chest again, harder, this feeling that she knows him. The name Arthur hits her like a truck carrying a load of cement, and her mouth falls open yet no words escape it for the longest time. She manages to mouth the name, but her vocal chords seem to have called it a day and gone fishing, leaving her mute and frustrated, so frustrated. 

He seems to notice her struggle a moment later, and awkwardly, he knits his fingers together in his lap, foot bouncing beneath the desk. "Do you ever feel like there's something different about you, Lena?" He asks, blue eyes wide and probing, and Lena thinks she catches something a little like reproach in them, as though he fears at any moment she may leap across the desk and cause him harm. Lena's headache increases tenfold, and she bites her lip.

"I think that most people feel that way at some point or another," she states, refusing to acknowledge his question. If she answered it, that'd be admitting to something much bigger and much scarier than she'd like to consider. After another loaded silence, she adds, "I have to ask, have I met you before Mr. Emerys?"

"Yes. Sort of. In a way." He scrunches his nose, and then the toothy grin is back. "Honestly I'm just glad you haven't tried to kill me yet." He chuckles, like that's a normal thing to say, and it is, a soft voice in the back of her head tells her. It is. He's right to be afraid. 

"I'm afraid I don't understand," she closes her eyes tightly and opens them again, almost expecting him to disappear in the time between. He's still there though, only looking at him again she expects to see a full head of blonde hair and a cocky grin in the near vicinity as well. It's unsettling her and Lena can't deal with it, this pressing on her brain, these strange thoughts and feelings. "I think you should go. I have another meeting to prepare for." She's lying through her teeth and she can tell he knows it, but he swallows back any attempts at dissuading her and nods, solemn now. 

"It's alright. It was hard for me at first too. But this time it's going to be different. This time I'll be the friend I should've been back then. We don't have to go down the same path as we did then." He looks like he wants to say more, but instead he gets to his feet, places a card down on the desk in front of her, feet taking him towards the door. He pauses, as he's about to exit, and looks back at her. "Arthur and I, we'll do right by you. That's why I came today, and that's why I'm hoping you'll call. We don't have to be enemies, Morgana." 

The name sends a shockwave through her system and she jerks to her feet, watching his figure close the door behind himself and god; her head hurts, her tongue feels heavy in her mouth, she can taste iron and feel the rush of phantom wind against her skin. 

She pours herself a glass of wine that's much too full and wonders when her life became such a mess.

.. 

When she shows up at Kara's apartment, it's 10 at night and she hasn't called first, but she needs to be reminded of what's real and what isn't, and Kara is the single most real thing in her life for reasons she'd rather not overanalyse. 

Kara opens the door seconds after Lena knocks and a blinding smile lights up her face when she sees Lena behind it, "Lena! I didn't know you were coming," her hand curls around Lena's arm to welcome her in and Lena feels the tension leave her body on impact, and she lets out a relieved huff of air. 

"I'm sorry, I should've called, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," she breathes, and Kara just shakes her head at her apologies as Lena enters the apartment, somehow always feeling like it's a new experience every time she does so. She loves Kara's apartment, from the sandy coloured walls to the stick figure drawing of Alex and Maggie on the fridge, signed with Winn's name. The way it smells like lavender and shea butter, just like Kara. It reminds Lena of happiness, of warm hugs, and acceptance. It's a lot to put on a tiny single bedroom apartment in national city, but Lena knows it's up to the task. 

"No, no," Kara chides, "you know you're always welcome here. Are you alright though, did something happen?" She inquires, eyes suddenly large with concern, and Lena feels herself melt just a little bite. 

"I'm fine, really," she lies, because she knows she will be fine after a few hours alone with Kara. "It's just been quite a long day and I thought maybe you hadn't had dinner yet?" She watches Kara's entire body light up at the mention of food, and she feels pride blossom within her for being the one responsible for Kara's happiness.

"Dinner sounds amazing," Kara says, mouth practically watering. "Pizza?" 

And if later on Kara asks her to stay the night ("c'mon Lena, it's so late, and it's nice and warm here") and she does, she definitely does not have butterflies in her stomach. Or at least she doesn't acknowledge them. 

But then it's 3:30 in the morning and she's tossing and turning and she's watching herself torture the man she'd just met today, and she wakes up in a cold sweat with her brother's name on her lips. Except, the shallow whisper in the dead of the night that she can barely hear over Kara's soft snoring isn't Lex, but Arthur, and she is oh so confused. 

...

Three days pass and she hasn't seen Mr. Emerys again but a gut feeling is telling her she will. Three days of restless sleeping, of vivid and despairing dreams that feel a little too real. Three days, and one vase shattered despite her being on the opposite side of the room. Three days and the only peace she's felt has been when she's at Kara's side. Most of the time she wants to scream, wants to punch something, wants just one thing to start making sense. Nothing does, anymore, though. 

Three days and Mr. Emerys is in her office again, with his ridiculous red scarf and olive cardigan, reminding her again of a hipster, and yet she can't picture him looking like anything else, really. 

"Hi," is all he says after Jess shows him in, shooting Lena a look that asked if she wanted her to stay or not, which Lena had returned with a dismissive wave. 

"Hello." She says back, and the unofficial staring contest begins. It's a heavy few minutes that passes, before he rolls his eyes. 

"This is ridiculous," he states, crossing his arms looking every part the disgruntled toddler. "We can't just sit here in silence." 

"We can, actually," Lena can't help but snark, she's irritated with him this time around, though she has no reason to be that she can think of, she just is. 

He laughs, and she can't help the way the tension drains from her shoulders slightly at the sound.

"You can, if you like," he relents, "I've got some stuff I wanted to talk about though, if you don't mind." 

Lena shrugs, curious. "I don't see why not."

"It was nearly impossible to stop Arthur from coming with me today. He was sure he could shake some sense into you, but I figured you probably wouldn't react too well to that. He's home sulking, now," He says the last part like it's some sort of inside joke between them and Lena finds herself smiling, a laugh tickling at the back of her throat, though why she couldn't explain. 

"Oh for goodness sake," she huffs, crossing her arms and furrowing her brow to force the smile away. "Could you just explain what's going on?" 

He looks pleased that she's more receptive now, and he nods eagerly. "When I came her last time, you called me Merlin. That's my real name," 

She can feel the headache inching its way back and she grits her teeth, 

"We knew each other, a long time ago. We were friends," it feels like a lie; like that's far from the truth, but then he continues, "but I kept something from you, and because of that you were manipulated by somebody who...didn't see things the way we did. She turned you into something else, and it was my fault. I'm truly sorry, Morgana. I am." 

She winces and holds up her hand to stop him. "If I'm going to entertain this, you'll need to start calling me Lena." 

He pauses, swallows, and then nods his agreement. "Right, yeah, of course." 

"Thank you. You may...continue," she reaches for her glass and wishes it were alcohol instead of water as she takes a swig. 

"Your brother, Arthur, he was-" 

Fragments of memories shoot across her mind, promises broken, relationships torn to shreds, a brother she loved and who loved her, even when he didn't know they were siblings. She chokes on her water and pulls back from her desk, reeling. "The king." She interrupts, throat on fire. "He was the king. I was- oh god, the things I did," She feels like she's going to be sick. "You need to leave. Now." 

He gets to his feet so quickly she almost misses it, and looks at her with equal parts fear and relief. "Morgana-"

"My name is Lena." Her voice comes out weaker than she'd expected, "My name is Lena." She repeats, feeling her world crumble beneath her feet and repressed memories bubbling to the surface. "Get the hell out of my office, now."

He doesn't need to be told twice. 

Lena reaches for her glass, and freezes when the liquid she sips is whiskey, and not the water it had been less than five minutes ago. 

Kara. She needs Kara.


	2. i just want to be myself

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena gets some advice from Kara, and decides to take the first step.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was really craving some Lena/Arthur bonding time, sue me. Next chapter will be from Kara's point of view :)  
> My tumblr username is fuckregina follow me for updates or gifs of Katie McGrath either way it's a win/win   
> Anyway enjoy and please let me know what you'd like to see coming up!

It doesn't take long to locate Kara, dressed as she is in a bright yellow sundress and pink cardigan, once she's made her way into the CatCo building.

In fact Kara is such a ball of sunshine that the path she herself had made into the building is clearly shown, everyone she's met on her way in has a smile on their face, uncharacteristic of those usually stressed and frustrated; working hard for a by-line, but momentarily charmed by the younger Danvers sister. It was basically just a case of following the fairy dust, Lena mused. 

Kara herself was on her feet in front of a whiteboard, odds and ends of newspaper clippings attached to each other with red string, all leading back to a single photograph tethered to the centre. Most likely figuring out her next move for an article, Lena surmised, a smile adhering itself to her face as she watched an adorable crinkle appear between Kara's brows, as she studied the whiteboard looking far more beautiful than should be considered legal. Lena felt heat rise beneath her cheeks, and came to stand behind her. 

"What fascinating new story are you going to grace us with next, Miss Danvers?" Lena teases, though she's genuine in her interest.

"Lena!" Kara gasps and twirls to face her, braid whipping around with her, a blinding smile on her face. "Oh my Rao, I didn't forget another lunch date did I?" 

The word date swirls around until it settles in Lena's tummy, before she manages a shake of her head, "no, no, we didn't have anything planned, I just wanted to see you." She absently wonders how Kara can be so oblivious, this is the second time in as many days that she's shown up unannounced, yet Kara doesn't seem to have a clue about the feelings that are definitely not friendship oriented. 

"That's fine by me- this case was giving me a headache anyway, wanna get coffee since you're here and all?" Kara's puppy dog eyes are irresistable, and Lena nods. 

"That sounds lovely. I have something i need some advice about anyway," Kara's eyebrows rise in interest, and they fall into a slow walk towards the elevator. 

"What's going on?" 

Lena considers how much to say, what to admit to, and figures the sudden reappearance of her magic is off the table for now. "An old acquaintance of mine turned up at my office yesterday, he... wanted to reconnect with me." 

She's sure the disappointment she sees in Kara's eyes is only her imagination when she asks, pressing the button in the elevator for the ground level, "Another ex boyfriend?" 

Lena scoffs at the thought, all too amused. "No, no. He's an old friend of my brother's. We used to be friends, until the three of us fell apart."

"Well, if you want my honest opinion, do you really think it's such a good idea to spend time with someone who was a friend of Lex's?" 

It jars her, that she's even for a moment forgotten Lex, but she takes a deep breath and re centres herself, "He's not close with Lex," it isn't exactly a lie, and she doesn't really know why she's not telling Kara the truth, is it because she fears her reaction? Or is it out of spite, perhaps, that Kara hadn't shared her own secret? 

Kara seems to consider this, and they exit the elevator together, "I mean, if you think he hasn't got an ulterior motive, then maybe it's a good idea. It never hurts to have more friends, right?" And she aims a look at Lena that is so piercing, so genuinely concerned, that Lena has to look away.

"I suppose you're right. I just fear that he may only want to befriend me to keep an eye on me, is all."

"Lena." Kara grabs her arm to stop her in place, but doesn't let go. Her skin feels hot under Kara's hand. "I don't want you to get hurt, but I think, if it's what you want, then you should give him a chance. If he turns out to be a..." she pauses to think of an appropriate word, "big mean jerk-guy, then we can deal with that."

We. We can deal with that. 

Lena replays Kara's words in her head, and bites her lip. "You're right."

"Of course I am, I'm always right," Kara teases, "C'mon, I need a coffee to finish this article and you're so slooooow," 

...

 

His house is not what she'd expected, to say the least. It's almost like a cottage really, with warm brown bricks and a chimney, surrounded by trees and a little, quaint white wood door. Lena almost feels like the earth will burst into flames and swallow her up if she takes a single step towards it, but after turning Merlin away yesterday, and losing the card with his details on it, she'd had to hire a sketch artist. And then, run facial recognition, ask a very puzzled Maggie Sawyer to get her an address, and now she was here. She can't turn back now, she reminds herself. She may have turned Merlin away, but she needs to know, to see for herself if it really was true. If Arthur had forgiven her. She was prepared for the hatred in his eyes in this life however, having seen it so often in Lillian's, Lex's, even. She's used to it now. It hurts, yes, but she can take it.

Before she can talk herself out of it she approaches the door, and lift her hand, allowing herself one last hesitation before pressing it to the wood in a quick knock. 

There's the thump of someone falling over something, followed by a shout of, "Mer-lin! What are you doing on the floor?" she hadn't factored in Merlin already being here, she clenches her fist at the sudden change in plans, although grateful for the buffer, she really had wanted to see Arthur alone. 

"I'm fixing the floorboard, you dollop-head," she hears Merlin snark, before the door is yanked open and she's face to face with the brother she lost so long ago. She's not tearing up, she's just got something in her eye. In both her eyes. 

"Morgana," he breathes, jaw slack, eyes wide. He looks exactly the same, save for the modern clothing. Jeans and a hoodie, he looks as much a frat boy as Mike of the interns. Lena clears her throat, unclenches her fists.

"My name is Lena now." She murmurs, and it seems to break the spell as he shuts his mouth and jerks to life, stepping back from the door, holding it open for her.

"Right, course." He nods, "I'm called Arthur here too. And Merlin was never anything but Merlin. I..." his face softens as she steps over the threshold. "I'm glad you're here." He surprises her with a small smile, which she tentatively returns, a little shaken up.

"Who was it?" Merlin asks, coming out into the hall and freezing. "Oh. Oh hello." He looks pleased to see her, if a bit awkward, and she nods to him.

"Merlin could you-" Arthur begins, but Merlin just nods eagerly.

"Go for a really long walk? Sure." He finishes for him, and he raises a hand in a wave before he manoeuvres his way around them and out the door. Lena looks around, sees framed photos of Merlin and Arthur, a golden retriever in some of them. They're standing by the staircase, but she can see the living room over Arthur's shoulder and it definitely looks like the two boys are cohabitating, a blanket thrown over the bulky couch, video game consoles lining the entertainment unit until it's over packed, bookshelves covering almost every wall, stocked to the brim. There's an awkward quiet lingering in the room before Lena manages to fill it with the question pressing on her mind.

"You and Merlin?"

Arthur makes a clicking noise with his tongue and avoids her eyes. "Ah, yes. Yes," 

"You have a dog, too?"

"That we do." 

"That's...kind of a funny coincidence," Lena finally chuckles, and Arthur meets her eyes as she laughs, bafflement clear on his face. It is, though, she muses, as she wonders how those two even work together. Arthur was in a relationship with a man, and Lena, well Lena was as gay as it got, so if anything, they would have that to bond over. If all else failed. "I'll explain later," she decides, because before they can talk about the easy stuff, they were going to need to address the elephant in the room. They stare at each other awkwardly for another moment before Lena groans.

"This is weird," 

"Yes!" Arthur agrees hand rubbing the back of his neck. "Very weird." 

"I'm just going to cut to the chase. I, for what I did, and I know this won't ever make up for the pain I caused, i just wanted you to know how sorry I am." She says it and then holds her breath, not daring a look at him. If there's anything that can be salvaged between them she needs to do this, and ignore her pride for once. 

Arthur seems surprised at her words, but then slowly, he begins to smile. "I'm sorry too, about how things ended between us. I...we got along so well, didn't we? Before all of that?" He holds a hand out, tentatively, and even Lena isn't sure if she'll take the peace offering or not. All of these memories are fresh for her, like burns behind her eyelids, and as much as she'd like things to go well, she's afraid. 

"Arthur," She murmurs, forcing herself to meet his gaze. "Did you love me?" It must sound such a stupid question, she knows, but the answer would determine everything. If Lillian could look her in her eyes and say those words, with nothing but emptiness behind them, if Lex could promise her everything and then try to kill her, she wanted to see for herself. Wanted to look him in the eye and be able to decide if she believed him. 

He falters, frowning. "Of course I did. I still do," 

She lets go of the breath she was holding, and then, she finds herself smiling, and she reaches out and takes the hand he'd offered her. "Then I think it's time for us to move on, don't you?" 

They sit on the couch and talk for a while, she directs the conversation his way for a while, happy to hear about the day Merlin came to find him, when he was alone in London feeling like his life wasn't right, and the way the two butted heads at first as Arthur was too stubborn to listen to him. How things changed when after a few weeks, Arthur started remembering things, started developing feelings for the dark haired boy, how that infuriated him to no end and made him even more stubborn. She laughs picturing the two of them, arguing like she remembered they used to, he speaks of moving to America with him, still not admitting how he felt for months, before they'd realised they'd inadvertently moved in together. He tells her about the day they'd found the dog, eating out of a dumpster in the alleyway by a Chinese restaurant, the way Merlin's eyes lit up and he begged Arthur to keep her, and Lena can't stop the swell of happiness within her when she heard of how happy the two of them are. He seems to realise she's avoiding the topic of herself after a while, though, and looks at her accusingly after she asks him yet another question about his life. 

"Not that i don't enjoy talking about myself," he interrupts her, and she snickers, knowing how true that is. "But you're deflecting, Morgana."

"Lena," she corrects, and he winces, apologetic. She wonders if he understands just how important the distinction is, how important it is that she's Lena. She doesn't want to be Morgana anymore. Doesn't want to be brimming with rage and despair and lashing out. She wants to be the woman she's become in this life, the woman with a chance at happiness. 

"Sorry. Old habits." He explains, curiousity still written all over his face. "Lena, then; what's your life like?" 

She doesn't want to upset him with her family life, that being partially the reason she'd been putting this off, but she supposes it's rather ironic, the role reversal that's occurred in response to her last life. She considers that perhaps it was the world teaching her something, but dismisses the thought just as quickly. "I'm a Luthor, here," she begins, searching his face for recognition but not finding any. 

"Merlin told me your name when he found you. Is that important?" 

She bites her lip. "The Luthor's are...cold. Evil, quite literally, as well. My brother-" she notices the dejected look on his face at her use of the term, "he tried to kill Superman, and did kill hundreds of innocent people in the process." She takes a shaky breath, "I don't think I go a month without an attempt on my own life at his hands." 

Arthur looks appalled. He crosses his arms, fury in his eyes. "I recognise the name, now," He informs her. "I've heard of Superman, but haven't seen him since we moved." He's carefully avoiding voicing an opinion on her confession, but she can see it's difficult for him to keep it in. "Are you alright?" He asks, finally, and she knows it's not what he wants to say. 

"Forunately, I'm used to assassination attempts, they're fairly frequent these days. Save the world twice but they still can't forget my last name." She huffs, and his jaw drops slightly, incredulous. 

"You-saved the world? When? How?" 

"I'm close friends with Supergirl." She almost wants to laugh at that. "Sometimes she asks me for help." 

He looks thoroughly impressed at that. 

"That's -" he pauses, frowns deeply, looking rather conflicted, "you have other friends though, right? You haven't mentioned anyone at all." 

She considers telling him she has two friends, telling him about Kara and late nights eating donuts in her office with her, movie nights and almost kisses and - she freezes, remembering that whether Kara has admitted as much or not, that still counts as one person. "I...Supergirl is my best friend. In and out of uniform." 

He recognises her lack of proper answer, but looks intrigued all the same. "You know who she is then? Bloody hell, that's amazing." He breathes. "She must really trust you." 

She flinches slightly, and looks away. "Well." She murmurs, before sighing, wondering if it is the best idea to reveal Kara's identity, if things don't work out then she could be putting her at risk. She glances up at Arthur and knows how stupid a thought that is. Arthur was too good, too kind to ever do anything to hurt Kara. It was Lena who shouldn't be trusted, and probably wasn't. "I met her as Kara Danvers, a reporter from CatCo. She came to do an article on my company-" she notes his raised eyebrows and she hopes she'll remember to explain that part later, "She was lovely. She actually cared about the truth, and we became close after that. I've never met someone who cared so much about everyone around her, she's beautiful and funny and just, she's the most wonderful person I've ever met." 

She can't help the glowing smile that lights up her face at the thought of Kara, can't help the way she fiddles with the hem of her pencil skirt, and she looks down, blushing a little bit, before looking back up to meet Arthur's eyes. "She's a better friend than I deserve, really." 

Arthur falters for only a moment before laughing. He throws his head back against the couch and chortles, much to Lena's chagrin. 

"Hey! Stop that, you insolent brat!" She whines, actually pouting at him. 

"There's the sister I remember!" He beams, "always ready with the insults," 

She rolls her eyes, "it's rather easy when you're such a pratt most of the time," she snarks, and he laughs again, grinning. "Don't laugh at me." 

"She sounds like a great...friend," he wiggles his eyebrows at her and she reaches over and smacks his shoulder, annoyed. 

"She is." 

"Are you sure there isn't something more to that, dear sister?" He teases, and her cheeks redden yet again and she glares at him, though it's rather ineffective when there's the hint of a smile playing at her lips as well. 

... 

For the first time in her life, Lena feels something close to happiness. The door to this emotion had been tentatively opened by Kara, and then kicked down by Arthur, and she's grateful to them both. Grateful to Merlin, even, for reaching out, although it was strange to see him so serious these days, she hoped it wouldn't last. In her minds eye she can see the two of them, in one of their spats, Merlin tripping over cobblestone and bumping into things but still managing to win whatever argument it was this time, knowing it would lead him to an afternoon in the stocks but not at all caring in the moment. She missed seeing him that way, funnily enough. 

Jess's face is full of shock when she adds two more names to the very short list of people who are allowed in whenever they would like, formerly consisting of a single name, Kara Danvers. She looks at Lena like she's grown an extra head, and then agrees reluctantly. 

Lena smiles. It isn't her company smile, nor her press smile, it's the smile that curls her lips into a beam, the one that actually reaches her eyes. 

"Is this a bad time?"


	3. life as a confused kryptonion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara is a perpetually stressed puppy. Pining occurs.

Kara Danvers is annoyed. Or more accurately, she is afraid. 

"Not a single move from Cadmus?" She asks again, and Alex shrugs, offering a simple answer of,

"Even bad guys need to take a break some time, right?" She sounds dubious though, and Kara knows even her sister can't quite believe it's something as innocent as that. 

"No," she frowns, pacing the small space between the desk and monitors, looking up at them again as if expecting a new move to appear on the screen, or an alarm to sound that will tell her Cadmus has done something again. "No, they're planning something, Alex." She turns wide, worried eyes to Alex, "I can feel it." 

Alex lets out a breath and winces. "Yeah, they're totally planning something." She agrees. "But we can't do anything about it when they're not really showing their hand at the moment."

"But I want them to," Kara whines, as childish as it is. "I can't stop them from doing nothing," she rests her forearms on the table, hair spilling onto it with them. 

"I know, Kara, for now we'll just need to wait and train, whatever their next move is we have to be ready for it." 

"I guess so," Kara pouts.

"And you," Alex points a finger at Kara, and then with a cheeky grin, jabs her in the cheek with it, laughing when Kara recoils and half heartedly glares at her, "need to get back to the office and do your actual job. There's nothing you can do here, kiddo." 

Kara sputters, indignant. "There so is!" She insists, "I can-I can work with James to come up with a counter plan!" She raises her hand triumphantly, and Alex stifles a snicker. 

"A counter plan for the absolute nothing we have to work with?" 

"Shut up." Kara scowls, "go make out with Maggie in a supply closet again." 

"Oh, I plan to," Alex teases, wiggling her eyebrows and making Kara gasp in mock horror. "But I can do that later. Y'know, when she's actually here and not just a figment of my imagination."

"Oh," Kara glances around and only now notices the abscence of Maggie, "I thought- it seems like she's always here, lately."

"J'onn said his workplace was getting too much like a high school," Alex chuckles. "Apparently we're too controlled by our hormones." She adds, conspiratoriously, and Kara laughs.

"He's not wrong," She muses, "you guys are pretty much always all over each other." 

"Do you blame me? Maggie's the hottest person alive-"

"Case in point." 

"Oh hush. Just because you haven't made a move on Lena yet." 

"I-we-Lena and I are just friends!" Kara stutters out, cheeks heating to a vibrant crimson, looking everywhere but at Alex. "She's my best friend."

"Best friends don't have dreams about making out with each other." Alex raises an eyebrow.

"One time! That was one time!" 

"You told me about it more than one time." 

"I...I'm calling Maggie, she can deal with you." Kara grumbles, turning to slink away.

"You going to work?" Alex calls after her.

"National city can't report on itself!" 

"Can you actually call Maggie then?!"

Kara laughs, and looks back at her, "Only because I can see you're suffering endlessly without her!"

...

Kara decides two minutes into her lunch break that she's going to spend it with Lena, after sitting at her desk staring at nothing, aimless, bored, and still stressing a bit over Cadmus's inaction as of late. She shoots off a text to jess as a heads up, paper bag of donuts in hand, and laughs when all she receives back is a grumpy face emoji. Kara follows the sound of Lena's heartbeat as the elevator drifts up, hearing the ends of a sentence as the little bell dings to let her know this is her floor and the doors open. 

"...we need to talk about this, It's important."

"Yes well, that may be but it's not up for discussion." 

"Lena..."

"No. I won't use it. It's dark, I'm not willing to succumb to it's power, I can't." 

"It isn't dark! Not anymore, and you need to learn control! I'm not the only one who thinks so, Arthur may be an intolerable dollop-head sometimes but even he's concerned."

"Please-" 

"If you don't control it it will control you. We know where that leads, just listen to me." 

Kara frowns deeply. Whatever they're talking about seems serious enough to be spooking Lena. The man sounds worried, and also British, which would normally send Kara on a spiral of terrible accent imitations, but Lena sounds upset and that's far more important to her. Whoever is causing Lena grief is about ten seconds from being thrown into the sun. She tucks in her curiosity and tugs the bottom of her sweater angrily, and heads towards the office doors, absently waving at Jess, whose eyebrows raise. 

"Crinkle, Kara!" She calls after her and Kara stops, pouts at her and sighs. 

"Stupid crinkle." She scowls, pauses to collect herself, adopt a more neutral expression, and then opens the doors. 

The two people inside startle at the intrusion, and Kara musters up a false apologetic smile. The man standing with his hands on Lena's desk straightens, and she gets a proper look at him. He looks remarkably like an elf to her, but that's probably just the influence of her lord of the rings binge with Alex last night. He smiles at her, and glances between the two women, looking slightly less serious and a bit more amused. 

"I'm so sorry to interrupt Lena, I can go if you're not finished," She makes no move to actually leave, and her voice has come out a little more forcefully than she's meant it to, but Lena looks so perfectly put together, like it's somehow effortless for her to be a flawless human being and that's a whole world of 'not appropriate, kara' so she cuts that train of thought short. 

"No, don't go Kara," Lena pleads, standing up and shoving a random file into the man's hands. "This is all you need for the business we spoke of Mr. Emerys." 

He looks at the file like he has no clue what it is, and then back at her, but she just raises her eyebrows and flicks her eyes back at the file at him. He frowns, then gasps out, 

"Oh! Yes! This is exactly what I needed!" His tone is exaggerated and Kara finds herself chuckling into her sweater, pushing her glasses up on her nose. If her enhanced hearing hadn't already made sure she knew this was a farce, he himself would've already given it away. "Thank you, Lena!" He holds the file up and then clutches it to his chest. "I'll ah- just be going then. Yes." He awkwardly waves goodbye to them both and hurries out the door. 

"Who was that?" She finds herself asking, pulling her eyes away from the doors he just blew through and back at Lena, who winces slightly and comes around her desk to sink into the sofa, Kara obediently following like a lost puppy.

"Remember the acquaintance I mentioned the other day? That would be him."

"You're doing business with him?" 

Lena looks confused for a moment before her fumble becomes clear to her and she nods, solemnly. "Yes, that I am. He's rather illustrious," she adds, with a secret smile. 

"And that's going well?" Kara asks, knowing it's a lie but hoping that the vagueness of the question will get her an honest answer, at least. Whatever's going on with Lena, she just wants to have her back. Which kinda means Lena had to actually let her. 

"Oh, Kara," Lena softens, relaxing her side into the back of the sofa, "you needn't worry about such things," 

"But I do!" Kara half throws her hands up in exasperation. She will always worry about Lena, whether the other woman thinks she should or not. Lena is precious to her, close to her heart (maybe even, though she'd never admit it, too close) and the thought of anything or anyone hurting her pains Kara. "I care about you Lena. I want you to be happy." 

"And there's the crinkle," Lena chuckles, slow and sultry, and Kara's stomach drops at the sound. 

"Lena..." there's a heaviness in the silence, in the way Kara's eyes are searching Lena's, in the way Lena seems to move closer, and the other woman's eyes drop momentarily to Kara's lips. A moment where Kara thinks she might be close to being kissed, a moment that is shattered when Lena's eyes drop further, and she gasps in delight.

"Donuts? Oh Kara, you're my favourite." 

So Kara reigns in her rampant feelings and hums, holding the bag out to Lena and hoping her disappointment doesn't show too obviously as Lena eagerly reaches into it, pulling out the one with pink frosting (her favourite, which is why the bag holds two of them, which Kara will normally never touch because they are Lena's, and in Kara's mind that makes them off limits, as food is incredibly important, and therefore donuts are incredibly important. It's the only way she'll ever admit her feelings for Lena). 

"And you're mine," she murmurs, under her breath, and watches as Lena, completely oblivious to her muttering, bites into her donut with a frustratingly sexual moan. Kara grits her teeth and pulls her lips back in a wide, fake smile to cover up her actual reaction, as an idea pops into her head. She reaches over, fingers brushing Lena's as she pulls a tiny section off Lena's donut, a real grin on her face as she pops it into her mouth, licking the frosting of her fingers with a cheeky smirk and watching her reaction. 

Lena just gapes at her, shocked with a hint of something Kara can't define on her face; and Kara swears she sees her eyes flash gold for a moment, but that couldn't have really happened, could it? They both jump at the sound of glass shattering, and turn to see the tray that usually houses Lena's glasses and jug of water, now home to shattered glass and a pool of water, which drips from the tray to the cart underneath it. 

"Oh my Rao," Kara breathes, then looks back at Lena only to see panic on her face as she stands up and brushes non existent lint off her skirt. 

"I need to make a call," She says, voice breaking as she stands with eyes glued to the tray, and Kara frowns. 

"Lena, your glasses just spontaneously combusted and you're going to make a phone call?" She asks incredulously, and Lena just winces. 

"Yes, an important one it seems," 

"Lena, what's going on with you?" She can't help but ask, curiosity insatiable and concern off the charts, but Lena shrugs a dismissive shoulder and shakes her head. 

"Nothing I can't handle," is the vague answer, and Kara's face scrunches in disappointment. How is she supposed to help her friend if she won't tell her anything? 

"If you don't want to tell me, that's okay." Kara says, resigned, "but the second you need help, you'll come to me, right?" And as if she's summoned Lena back to her with her words, the other woman sinks back into her side and curls herself into her side, shooting a flaming heat into Kara's chest and a warmth throughout her body, tingling at the tips of her fingertips. 

"Of course, Kara. You're my best friend; I promise if anything gets too much you're the first person I'll call," she says softly, her fingers coming up to brush through The ends of Kara's hair, almost instinctively, and Kara sinks into the comfort like it's a warm bath at the end of a long day. She forces herself to accept this, not to question Lena further, because there's clearly something big on her mind and Kara wants to know about it, wants to be able to fix it for her, but she can't. 

"Alright," she whispers, and then remembers herself, standing up and holding her arms out expectantly, and Lena beams as she throws herself into the hug wholeheartedly, "Make that call then, and text me if you need anything." She says as a goodbye, because she needs to get away from her so she can breathe again, so she can stop herself from doing something that would ruin their friendship forever. 

"I will," Lena swears, and parts from her with a fondness in her gaze that sends her heart soaring above her body. "Thank you for the donuts, Kara."

"Anytime." 

...

Cat calls her twenty minutes after she gets back to CatCo, and mere moments after Kara has secured an interview with a witness who could finally break her story open. This one has been difficult to make any progress with, Maxwell Lord up to something nefarious but not so much evil for once, so rather than Supergirl dealing with it, it's up to ordinary reporter Kara Danvers to get to the bottom of it. It had taken days to get the builder to come around, to even admit he'd seen the new blueprints for a building Lord had commissioned to be built, that he'd noticed that they were using sub par building materials that could endanger everyone who sets foot inside it. 

"Miss Grant," Kara chimes, relieved to hear from her mentor, considering asking her opinion on her next step (not only for the case, if she's honest. Cat gives the best advice).

"Keira," Cat drawls, and Kara thinks she can hear her pen scrawling in the distance, a sign that Cat's probably in her home office right now. "Have you seen today's issue of the Daily Planet?" 

Kara flounders for a minute, doesn't want to admit that actually she hasn't, so she puts Cat on speaker and pulls it up on her phone to see what's caught Cat's attention. 

"Oh," 

"Yes. My thoughts exactly." Cat snipes, sounding quite put out. "Is it true?" 

There's a photograph someone's taken of her fight with her cousin, during the invasion, and with it a photograph of Superman on his back, out cold in the water. The article is entitled, 'Family tiff or something more? Superman may have to turn in his cape' and Kara growls under her breath a bit. It's the one thing that'd slipped both hers and her cousin's minds, and since they hadn't addressed the issue with the press, they'd gone ahead and made assumptions. 

"It does look bad," she admits finally, and puts her phone down before she crushes it in her hand. Rethinks that a moment later when she sees the prying eyes of the reporters around her and takes it back off speaker, putting it to her ear. "But I think it would make more sense if they were fighting because Superman was compromised," she hints, wondering to herself just how long they're going to play this game. 

"That does sound like a reasonable assumption, Kiera," Cat accepts, and Kara hears her drop her pen in the background. "I want an interview with Supergirl on the cover of our next issue ascertaining as much. You understand?" She understands, alright. Understands that yet again Cat's saving her from a potentially massive media problem. If the world decides she and Superman are fighting, they'll start choosing sides. Which will of course lead to mass conflict, and that's the last thing she needs right now. 

"Consider it done." She says, appreciation heavy in her voice. 

"Good. Now that that mess is out of the way, how are you Kara?" The use of her real name means the conversation has moved from formal to friendly, and Kara smiles.

"I'm doing well, Miss Grant," 

"That's not very specific," Cat notes, knowingly.

"It's..." Kara sighs. "You remember Lena?" 

There's a chuckle through the receiver. 

"One does not simply forget the CEO of L-Corp, Kara. I heard you two had grown close." 

"Yeah. Yeah, we have, but I think..." she pauses, crinkle reappearing as she considers what she means to tell her, "I think she might be in trouble." 

"And what gives you that impression?" Cat asks, interest sparked. 

"I walked in on a meeting she was having-" She ignores the disapproving 'tssk' sound and continues, "And it seemed really serious, when I asked her about it she said she could handle it, but then after that she was acting so weird-"

"Kara, I'm going to stop you right there. If something is wrong with your friend, and she hasn't told you, maybe it's because she isn't ready to. If you're as close as it seems you are, she'll come to you in her own time." Her voice softens when she adds, "It's okay to worry about her anyway."

Kara huffs out a breath and nods to herself. Cat's right. Cat's pretty much always right. Relief sets in her belly as she turns Cat's advice over in her head. She could do that, she decided, she could leave it to Lena and not push. Or well, leave it to Lena. She's probably still going to push, she can't help it. "Of course. Thank you, Miss Grant."

"If somebody has to remind you how to be human every now and then, it may as well be me." Cat muses, and Kara rolls her eyes as they again dance around her secret. 

"How's Carter doing?"

And as Cat tells her, pride lighting her up about how Carter has joined the chess club, that he's made some new friends, Kara relaxes into her chair and smiles. Now that she has an idea of how to move forward, even if it's basically an inaction plan rather than an action plan, she's already feeling lighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I miss Cat Grant tbh where dat bish go come back pls. I really hope I did Kara justice, I've never tried writing from her point of view before aghhh  
> Fuckregina on tumblr come find me homies


	4. every little thing she does is magic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena has her first magic lesson, and Maggie convinces Kara not to do something stupid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so yes the title is meant to be ironic haha.  
> Anyway I really hope you enjoy this, I'm enjoying writing it, please comment to let me know what you think!

Lena lets out an exasperated sigh and lifts her hand to rap her knuckles against the door for what must be, at the very least, the fifth time. Still no answer. She glances at her watch for the time, 9:00am, they really should be awake by now. 

She huffs out a breath and turns, burying her face in her fuzzy navy scarf -a gift from Kara, and ignores the chill biting at her cheeks as she glances over at the garage. And then she stares. 

That can't be- no way is that- Lena blinks, hard, and then hurries down the steps and across the path, heels clicking loudly, until she comes to stand to the side of the Stallion that's made a home of the boys' garage. There's endless stacks of hay, an outdoor heating unit, and a haphazardly (although she must admit, sturdily) built stall at the back left corner, where the horse is grazing. 

It's absolutely beautiful, she muses, taking in the pure white coat, the small black splotch the only secondary colour on him, just above his nose. It registers to her that the Garage had never been home to any vehicles before, but she's sure she would've noticed a horse. Right? 

 

She suddenly remembers again why she's here, and while she'd love to linger by the horse a while longer, it truly is urgent. She spares the horse a last wistful, longing look, and walks back up the path, up the chipped concrete steps and knocks again. She can hear movement inside now, and finds herself intensely glaring at the door that is standing between her, and her first magical training session with Merlin. If it would just open, she thinks, and an idea pops into her head. 

She clenches her fists, and locks her gaze on the door, whispers a familiar incantation in her head. Her eyes flash gold, she can feel the magic humming behind them, and then- the door disappears altogether. 

She gasps in shock, and then winces, realising this will only inspire another 'this is why control is important' spiel from Merlin, and if she's lucky, Arthur won't be too outraged by the lack of a front door to his home. Wishful thinking, she supposes, when the boys finally amble downstairs, Arthur looking grumpier than ever and Merlin with a cheerful bounce to his step. 

"Sorry!" Merlin calls, "We slept through the alarm. Or, alarms, I s'pose," he looks back at Arthur with a grin, which is only returned with a shove to his side and a tired groan. "Not a morning person," he whispers conspiringly to Lena, when he gets to the front doorstep. "You remember. It's good to see you, Lena."

She doesn't know what to say for a second, because she doesn't know why nobody's saying anything about the door. "I...yes, I do." She agrees, remembering items thrown and groaning and insults shouted whenever their current manservant came to wake him. Although, that seemed to somehow get louder once Merlin took over the job. "It's good to see you too."

"So, door's missing," Merlin observes a moment later, "that's something to work on, then."

"What?!" Arthur seems to shoot awake from where he's wandered off to in the kitchen, half way through brewing a pot of coffee. "Merlin, tell me you didn't just say-" he turns the corner and Lena looks at him like a deer in the headlights. 

"I apologise, I admit it was rather foolish to think I could control my magic enough to-"

"Don't be sorry," Merlin interrupts, ignoring Arthur's incredulous expression, and he places a hand on Lena's shoulder and gently squeezes. "Mistakes happen, and they'll keep happening while we train. No use getting upset over them now. Besides," he turns his face to grin at Arthur, "it means I get to show off." 

Lena watches, having taken a few steps inside the house now, as Merlin's eyes flash gold and the door seems to come back into existence from the bottom up. 

"While that's just peachy, Mer-lin," Arthur grouches, "why'd you get rid of it in the first place?" He turns confused eyes on her, and Lena blushes. 

"To be honest, I was only trying to open it." She ignores the laugh that bursts from her brother's lips, embarrassed.

"Can't believe you didn't notice it before, how'd you think she got in?" Merlin asks curiously, leaning casually against the wall, eyebrows raised.

"I...well, I dunno, Merlin, I thought she-you know..." he makes a vague flourishing gesture with his hand, "magic," he finishes weakly, his own cheeks flooding with red. Merlin and Lena exchange a look, and completely fail to stifle their giggles. 

"Magic doesn't work quite like that," Lena explains, and she can't help the fluttering in her chest as she and Merlin have fallen back into easy companionship, like old times, struggling to deal with Arthur's antics together. 

"I didn't know that!" Arthur grumbles, crossing his arms, "and if either of you two fools would like coffee, I suggest you stop laughing at me."

Lena and Merlin share another look, grins on both their faces, and force themselves to keep their amusement in. 

"Right, of course Arthur," Merlin says solemnly, bumping his shoulder against Lena's, a feat in its own as she's much shorter than him.

"Yes, we shouldn't belittle the King, after all," Lena agrees just as solemnly, trying her hardest to maintain a straight face. Arthur glares at the two of them but gestures towards the living room.

"Make yourself at home Lena." He says, and waits for the two to head towards the couch, stopping her as Merlin passes and throws himself into it with gusto. "I mean it, I want you to see our home as a second home for you, as well." He tells her, with genuity, holding her still with a gaze so powerful and a love so familiar that she feels dizzy. 

"I do, Arthur." She says, and at his raised eyebrow she smiles, "Really. Thank you."

"I know it's been hard for us in the past," He murmurs softly, "I just want things to be clear, that's all." 

"Merlin told you," she surmises, and she doesn't know why she's surprised at Merlin's honesty. "That he didn't tell me about his magic, when I needed help." She clarifies, and Arthur nods, eyes briefly darting to check that Merlin wasn't listening, before turning back to her.

"He's ashamed of it. When we first grew close," He says softly, too quiet for the other man to hear, "before we found you, he would have nightmares. About that decision, as well as other things. I just wanted to tell you, that we'll be honest with you. The house of Pendragon has seen enough secrets, don't you agree?" 

She can't help the soft smile that graces her lips, and it's just instinct to wrap her arms around him, face burying itself in his chest. His arms come to settle around her, and they stay locked in that embrace for a while. Lena wonders when her heart will stop doing this, when it will stop filling with happiness, just from a few words from Arthur or Merlin. She hopes it doesn't, she's growing quite fond of this feeling. Still, a part of her, the part that doesn't trust family any longer, the part that is used to being abandoned, beaten and battered by those it loves whispers to her that inevitably it will all come to an end. It reminds her that at some point, they'll find out about Lillian, about the beatings she took as a child, about how hard it is for her to connect with anyone now, and they'll realise she's even more damaged than they'd initially thought. She tries to ignore it, and tightens her arms around Arthur.

"If you two are done with your moment, Lena and I really should get started," Merlin calls, though his face is soft and his voice is kind, and she pulls away and shakes herself. 

"Of course. I'm coming now, Merlin." She smiles at Arthur, pats his arm assuringly, and goes to situate herself next to Merlin on the sofa. 

"We're going to start small," The dark haired boy begins, and Lena notices the small figurines littering the coffee table. Little wooden things, made to look like people, and she wonders absently if Merlin made them himself. It would be fitting of him, taking his job so seriously that he thinks he must have to go above and beyond to achieve it. 

"I can see that," She jokes, and picks up a tiny cow, turning it round in her fingers to get a good look at it. "These are cute," 

"Thanks," Merlin's ears redden, and he rubs the back of his neck bashfully. "Arthur made them." 

She stares at him, surprised. "He did?"

"Oh yeah. He likes things that remind him of home, when he can't find what he wants, he makes it."

"That's...actually quite sweet," 

"Yeah. But as your teacher I've got to say we should get started, else you'll never learn anything." 

"You've got a point. Okay, what's first?"

Merlin plucks the cow from her hands and places it back on the table, before pointing to what Lena can only assume is a princess. "I want you to pick her up, and picture Guinevere." 

She's already picked her up when the name startles her into dropping it immediately. "I...Merlin," she pleads, feeling like she's been submerged in scalding water.

"It's a simple glamour charm," he frowns at her, "it's one of the easiest-" he cuts himself off after looking at her face, seeing the grief there, "oh. Oh I'm such a dollop-head," he groans, dropping his face into his hands. "I'm so sorry, Lena," 

"It's...okay," She says cautiously, retrieving the figure from where it sat on its side against the chestnut carpet. Deep down she knows she's absolutely not ready to have this conversation yet, because Gwen really is gone, and she isn't coming back, and she just can't do this. "Let's just move on. Somebody else, perhaps?" 

Merlin raises his head to look at her, confused, but seems to come to the right conclusion that she doesn't want to talk about it. "Yeah, okay, I uh, yeah." He nods rapidly enough for Lena to wonder if it's possible for a person to give themselves a concussion like that, "oh!" Excitement leaks into his voice, "I know!"

"Alright, what am I working with now?" She teases, and he beams at her. 

"That girl you like, the one that's also Supergirl, Kara right?"

Lena bites her lip, and amused, she nods, before turning her eyes back to the little princess and asking, "what do I do?"

He claims a figure for himself, a little king, and she thinks she catches him whispering 'Arthur' under his breath, and with a golden glint the doll is suddenly a miniature copy of the king of Camelot himself. unmoving, but with his signature cocky expression, wearing the same outfit Arthur himself was wearing today, white shirt and blue pajama pants. Lena can't help the giggle that escapes her lips.

"Oh, it looks just like him," she coos, and Merlin hands it to her to have a better look. "How did you do it?"

"Just look at it, concentrate, and picture the person you want it to be, like..." he seems to think for a moment, "sort of like a photograph overlaying another." 

That seems straightforward enough, and Lena places the mini Arthur down and holds the little princess in front of her, trying her best to follow Merlin's direction. Kara, she thinks with purpose, Kara. She must have closed her eyes at some point, because when she opens them she growls in frustration. The princess is definitely Kara, that's for sure, but she's only managed to do half the charm, so while yes, Kara's endearing smile looks back at her, the princess's clothes are still on her, rather than the pink sweater and chinos she had been thinking of. 

"She's not right," Lena sighs, forlornly. "If it's such an easy charm, why can't I do it right?" She aims this at Merlin, and he tilts his head at her. 

"She looks nice to me." He says, "The hardest part is usually imposing the face on the doll, it just means that maybe you got distracted." 

She's about to tell him that there's no way she could have been, she'd been very focused, when she catches the wink he throws her way and rolls her eyes. Cheeky bugger. 

"And who might this be?" Arthur's voice breaks the staring competition she and Merlin had been partaking in, as he places their mugs of coffee on the table behind the figures, and reaches to take the Kara princess from Lena. 

"It's Lena's lady friend," Merlin absolutely glows, obviously taking joy in her embarrassment. She flicks him in the arm, and he winces, holding his chest like he's wounded. "How could you, Lena? After everything we've been through!" She graces him with another, harder flick at that, and he laughs.

"She's certainly your type," Arthur says, pushing his way between them to stop their childish behaviour. Lena looks at him in surprise and he rolls his eyes. "Oh, as if I didn't catch the looks you would give some of the servant girls. You were so obvious, Morga-Lena," He corrects himself mid sentence.

"I was not." She says indignantly, and crosses her arms with a pout at the shared look the boys exchange at that. Rude. 

"You were." Merlin says, sipping his coffee. 

"I don't like either of you." She mutters into her own mug, and the two laugh. 

"Yes you do." Arthur chuckles, and does the unthinkable. His hand comes up, and before she knows it her perfectly done hair is a mess as he ruffles it. 

"You just crossed a line, Arthur Pendragon," She says ominously, before turning to tackle him, launching them both to the ground and knocking Merlin's coffee, much to the other boy's dismay as he gasps out an 'Oi!' At them. They end up locked in a poorly executed wrestling match, that very much reminds Lena of when they were teenagers, and Uther would have to physically seperate them. She never behaved like this at the Luthor house, even as a child, she would have been beaten for even thinking of taking part in such tom foolery, and Lex was never one to behave immaturely like this. 

For once, just for this moment, Lena allows herself to be something other than the perfectly put together, well behaved CEO of L-Corp. She lets herself take a step away from being a Luthor, as well, and just enjoys herself. She's sure they look such a sight; Lena in her slacks and blazer, white blouse coming untucked, and Arthur in his sleepwear, rolling about on the floor. They both fall into easy laughter, lying on the floor between the couch and the coffee table, while Merlin looks unimpressed.

"We do need to finish this lesson today, you two." 

It's hours later, after being fed apple pie by Arthur ('see! Isn't it just the best thing you've ever eaten?') and many, many frustrating attempts at a glamour charm before she finally succeeds, and then a few more before she actually masters it, that she leaves the house in the woods to head for L-Corp. after all, being the CEO of a Fortune 500 corporation doesn't get to be put on hold just because she's going through a huge lifestyle change. She pulls out her phone and turns it back on, to find several missed calls from Jess, which instantly worries her since her assistant had cleared her schedule for the morning, and a text from Kara.

It reads much like the girl talks, a message of, 

'Hey, Lena! I came by before but Jess told me you took the morning off- which is totally okay because boy do you overwork yourself so it's about time you took a break! Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to come over after you finish work and maybe watch a movie? It's okay if you're busy. Hope you're having a great day! -Kara' 

It leaves Lena smiling, even as she taps Jess's contact to call her. 

"Miss Luthor!" Jess sounds relieved, which concerns her again. "Mr. Wayne has been calling all morning, he wants your help with a project. He's been pretty insistent on talking to you."

"I'm on my way back to the office now, Jess. I won't be longer than twenty minutes," She presses the button to unlock her car, and opens the door, "If Mr. Wayne calls again, tell him that I'll call him as soon as I arrive."

"Alright, I can do that," 

"Thank you, Jess. I'll see you soon."

"No problem, I'll push your one o clock to one thirty for you."

"You're amazing," Lena grins as she turns her key in the ignition, "And could you remind me after my conference with Mr Wayne to get in touch with Kara? I don't want it to slip my mind between meetings." Not that she thinks it ever would, but sometimes she does get caught up. 

"Sure thing. I'll put that into your schedule." She thinks she hears a trace of something like amusement in Jess's voice, but elects to ignore it for now.

"Goodbye Jess." She ends the call and takes a deep breath before beginning her drive back.

...

 

"I've decided I'm going to snoop," Kara declares into the cramped space of the supply closet, eyes glued to Maggie expectantly. 

"You're going to snoop?" 

"And you're going to help me." 

Maggie stares at her blankly for a long moment, before shaking her head, entertainment clear on her face. "I'm in the supply closet with the wrong Danvers sister," she muses, almost to herself, before adding, "Although I do like hijinks," 

Kara's filled with hope and she jerks her head up and down rapidly, "Yes! And this will be the best of all the hijinks you've taken part in! I swear it," 

Maggie has been beguiled, even she can admit as much, and she nods her head in defeat. "Alright little danvers, what are we up to then?" 

"There's something wrong with Lena," Kara explains, her eyes filled with worry and frustration. "And she won't talk about it because she's too stubborn, but I have to help her. The weirdest thing is she wasn't in her office today. And Maggie - She's always at work! One time she got really sick and she still went to work! Jess told me she took the morning off and that she's never done that before but she wouldn't tell me why or where she was- which I guess makes sense because it's her job to make sure she doesn't just tell everyone what Lena's doing, but still!" Kara rambles.

"Actually," Maggie remembers, "She did ask me for something weird the other day." 

Kara's whole frame is buzzing with excitement, "What was it?" Her voice comes out as a hushed whisper, leaning closer to the smaller woman. 

"An address, and she seemed pretty desperate to get her hands on it. You think she has a kid out there somewhere?" 

Kara pauses, the thought never having occurred to her, and frowns, "I mean I guess that would explain it," she admits, "But I feel like that's something she would've told me, she tells me everything."

"But the whole reason we're snooping is because she doesn't tell you everything," Maggie reminds her, a sardonic smile on her face. "Have you tried just asking her what's wrong?"

"Of course I have!" Kara groans, exasperated. "But for like, the first time since we've been best friends, she won't tell me." 

"Okay, okay," Maggie raises her hands up in surrender. "I get it, little Danvers, I do- I have to ask, are you sure you wanna do this? It could really blow things up between the two of you." 

The idea of this had never hit Kara, and she turns into a fish for a moment, simply opening and closing her mouth st Maggie. 

"I..."

Maggie's eyes soften. "You care about her a little more than just as friends, don't you?" She implores, gentle as she reaches out and lays a hand on Kara's arm. "It's okay if you do, Kara." 

"It's nothing," Kara mutters, looking utterly pitiful. "It doesn't matter, because she's perfect and i'm..." She sighs heavily, and gestures to herself, "Me." 

"Oh, Kara, no," Maggie soothes, and pulls the taller woman in for a hug, head only making it to Kara's shoulder when Kara leans down to accept it. "You're amazing, kid. I don't mean when you're wearing the red and blue, either, even though that is pretty amazing. Kara Danvers is much more than Supergirl, you must know that." 

"Am I? I feel like most of the people around me weren't as interested in me before I was her. Back when I was just plain, boring Kara Danvers, I didn't have anywhere near as many friends." 

"Kara, listen to me. Maybe you weren't as confident back then, I don't know, and maybe that's why. I just know that I met you before I knew your secret, and sure, at first I thought you hated me," she chuckles, 

"Cause I did. I thought you broke my sister's heart," she mumbles into Maggie's shirt, sounding almost embarrassed. 

"-But." Maggie talks over Kara's voice, "the second you started actually talking to me, I realised how kind you are, how selfless, and I figured there must be something in the water you two were drinking, because nobody is that good. Except you and Alex are, Kara, you are that good. That's why, yeah, Supergirl is impressive, but the woman behind her is so much more than that." She pulls away to look Kara in the eye as she speaks, and Kara awkwardly raises her sleeve to wipe at her eyes. Yeah, she's totally crying, and has definitely left a wet patch on Maggie's shoulder. "So, we're backing off from Lena, then?" She chuckles, trying to alleviate the heaviness in the room. 

"Y-yeah. I think we are." 

"Then let's go get some lunch, huh?" Maggie's eyes twinkle as a dimpled grin lights up her face, and Kara's about to voice her agreement when the door jerks open, spilling light into the dimly lit room and making the two women squint.

"Alex?" Kara tilts her head. "You need something?" She asks a minute later, when she remembers they're in the supply closet and sometimes people actually /need/ supplies. 

Alex just stares at the two of them for a long moment before shaking her head in amusement. "We're not twins Maggie," She laughs, and the two stare at her in confusion.

"Yes...?" 

"So I don't know how you managed to mix us up," she finishes, finger moving between the two of them. 

"Oh!" They both notice at the same time that it does look kind of weird, the two of them squished in here, and Maggie exits to throw her arms around Alex. 

"Well now, they don't call you two the Damn-vers sisters for nothing," She teases, and the two of them kiss. Kara rolls her eyes at the adult women who are somehow always hormonal teenagers in each other's presence. They pull apart a moment later. "Kara just needed some advice, and since my job is literally detecting and finding answers, she came to me." 

"Aww!" Alex gasps, and looks at them both with a mixture of amusement and happiness, "that's so cute! You two are just, ugh. Cute." She looks like she may explode from joy any minute.

"We were about to get lunch, you wanna come Alex?" 

"Oh my god yes. I need a burger."


End file.
